


The Risky Aim (Love Is A Game)

by xingnini



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Attempt at Humor, Comedy, Competition, Enemies to Friends, Fluff, High School, M/M, Pining, Romance, Russian Roulette by Red Velvet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-30
Updated: 2017-08-30
Packaged: 2018-12-21 16:53:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11948538
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xingnini/pseuds/xingnini
Summary: “All's fair in love and war,” Kyungsoo told himself to calm down as Baekhyun’s annoying ass walked away from him.





	The Risky Aim (Love Is A Game)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sugar_and_Salt](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sugar_and_Salt/gifts).



> akjsdhakdjhf I couldn’t help but claim this, I’m so sorry ;~; I’m so in love with Red Velvet’s Russian Roulette MV;; I think I deviated too much from the desired pairing but I didn't know how else to write it, sorry ;(
> 
> Prompt: #90 - Blissfully oblivious Chanyeol has no clue about the fierce fight happening right behind his back. Kyungsoo is merciless when it comes to his love rival(s), and Baekhyun isn't any less persistent → inspired by Red Velvet's "Russian Roulette" MV.
> 
> Written for ‘EXO Free Love AU’ Fic Fest!!

“Give it up, Do Kyungsoo!!” 

 

Byun Baekhyun’s loud voice echoed through the school halls, drumming through Kyungsoo’s ears. Continuing to walk onwards, Kyungsoo closed his eyes and pursed his lips together in an attempt to keep his cool. He would not lose face in front of everyone just because of Byun Baekhyun. 

 

It was so early in the morning and Byun already wanted to start with him. 

 

“Hey, I’m talking to you!!” Baekhyun shouted as he neared Kyungsoo. He finally caught him by the shoulder, effectively stopping him in his tracks. 

 

Kyungsoo’s eyes rolled in the back of his head in annoyance. He let out frustrated huff and finally turned around. “What do you want?” 

 

Baekhyun folded his arms across his chest. 

 

“You know what I’m going to tell you,” he said, a defiant smile on his face. 

 

“Yes, because it’s not like I don’t hear it every single day,” Kyungsoo deadpanned. 

 

“Just a friendly reminder!” Baekhyun answered happily before turning around on his heels — but before the elder could start walking away, Kyungsoo noticed a stray piece of yarn sticking out of the older’s sweater. 

 

He grabbed it. 

 

He held onto it as Baekhyun continued to walk away, oblivious to the pulled yarn becoming undone and ruining the back of his knit sweater. It was only when he felt some wind on the back of his undershirt and people were staring behind him that he realized what was going on. 

 

His sweater didn’t have a back to it anymore!!

 

Baekhyun only gaped, his mouth wide open. He turned around to see Kyungsoo still holding the other end of the string. “WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?! THIS SWEATER WAS THIRTY DOLLARS!!!!” 

 

“Oops,” Kyungsoo shrugged, dropping the string and walking away from the fuming boy.  

 

Baekhyun: 0 • Kyungsoo: 1

  
  
  


It was a known fact that Do Kyungsoo and Byun Baekhyun liked the same person.

 

Everyone  _ absolutely  _ knew that fact!

 

— Everyone, but Park Chanyeol himself. 

 

Chanyeol was so innocent and blissfully oblivious to the war going on around him. Almost everyday, Baekhyun and Kyungsoo would go at it, fighting for their love for him. While there were classmates who tried to avoid the two and their conflicts as much as possible, there were also classmates who found their immature squabbling entertaining. It was always Byun Baekhyun barking up the wrong tree, while Do Kyungsoo struck at him when he least expected it and in the most bizarre ways. 

 

They mostly went at it in gym class, because it was the one class they shared. 

 

After the general attendance and stretching, the class would play a sport for the remainder of the period. For the past week, gym class took place at the pool — the teacher tried to teach them how to float, kick for a whole lap, and jump off a diving board. Baekhyun took every opportunity he had to dunk Kyungsoo’s head into the water without any warnings. 

 

If anyone was keeping the track, the score would probably be Baekhyun: 1 • Kyungsoo: 1.

 

“Byun Baekhyun, hurry up!!” the physical education teacher yelled at the frightened boy. He was standing at the edge of the diving board, covering his eyes and too scared to jump. “You literally just have to step off the board and I’ll give you an A!!” 

 

The class groaned as the boy began shaking. They’ve all been waiting impatiently for their turn for ten minutes, because Baekhyun would neither jump off nor come back down. 

 

Everyone watched silently as Kyungsoo made his way to the diving board. Before the teacher realized what was going on, Kyungsoo was already behind Baekhyun. 

 

“Hey, only one person allowed on the divin—” 

 

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!” Baekhyun shrieked before a loud  _ smack! _ resounded throughout the deck. His classmates collectively gasped, while Kyungsoo just stood on the board, looking down at the boy who had just belly-flopped. 

 

“Damn, Do Kyungsoo’s a savage.” 

 

“That’s gotta hurt.” 

 

“Served him right, he was taking too long.”  

 

Baekhyun finally surfaced from beneath the water and glared up at the diving board. “DO KYUNGSOO!! HOW DARE YOU PUSH ME IN!!” 

 

The younger shrugged. “I was doing the class a favor.”

 

“Do you want me to die?!”

 

“Maybe not  _ die _ , but get seriously injured. I kinda wish the pool was drained empty when I pushed you in,” Kyungsoo told him casually.

 

Baekhyun gasped, scandalized. “Teacher! Don't you hear what he's saying?!” 

 

“Baekhyun-ah, just get out of the pool already so that the others can have their turn.” 

 

Baekhyun: 1 • Kyungsoo: 2

  
  
  


“Alright, divide into two teams; one team goes here and the other goes there,” their teacher commanded, while pointing at opposite sides of the gym. “We’ll be playing an actual game of dodgeball today.” 

 

At that, Baekhyun’s ears perked up and his face brightened. Dodgeball? A game where he can actually hurl things at Kyungsoo without any consequences?! Baekhyun has played dodgeball during free play , but Kyungsoo just hid in a corner every time. Since this was a class activity, he was basically forced to participate now! 

 

Baekhyun didn’t care which team he was on, as long as it was the opposite of Kyungsoo’s team. He knew he had the advantage this time, because Do Kyungsoo was not good at sports at all. Baekhyun was already thinking about how he will ignore his role as a team player and aim solely for his rival. 

 

There were about fifteen students on each team and most of them were prepared to grab the dodgeballs that were placed in the middle of the gym. There were the couple of students who stayed in the back as much as possible, including Kyungsoo. 

 

“Ready,” the teacher called out. “Start!” 

 

Chaos ensued as the students shot forward and clawed for the balls. As soon as a person got their hands on one, they would hurl it at any person in their way. Baekhyun stayed back from the front lines, because he didn’t want to get out right away; he wanted the chance to get at Kyungsoo. 

 

He planned to emerge victorious from this battle. 

 

Once people started clearing out, Baekhyun stepped forward and started eliminating people himself, whether it was by throwing the dodgeballs at them or catching the ones thrown at him. 

 

Soon, it was down to four people — Baekhyun, Kyungsoo, each with a team member. 

 

Kyungsoo somehow managed to avoid all the balls thrown at him. His team member threw a ball at Baekhyun’s teammate and got him eliminated, but he was thrown out by Baekhyun immediately after.

 

Now it was just Baekhyun and Kyungsoo. 

 

The whole class watched in anticipation, waiting for Baekhyun to throw Kyungsoo out because they wanted to start a new game, and they knew Kyungsoo didn’t stand a chance when it came to anything that involved sports. 

 

Baekhyun quickly hurled a ball in Kyungsoo’s direction, but the younger stepped off to the side to dodge it. Each ball he picked up and threw, Kyungsoo was able to dodge — Baekhyun’s throwing was starting to get frantic and desperate. 

 

“HEY!” Baekhyun yelled out in frustration. “Can’t you just let me win this once?!” 

 

“But I don’t want to,” Kyungsoo answered simply. 

 

“You’re not even throwing the ball or catching the ones I throw, how can either one of us win?!” 

 

“Okay, in that case…” Kyungsoo pondered, picking up a dodgeball. He winded his arm back, ball in his hand; Baekhyun scoffed and laughed out loud, because it looked as if he was really going to throw it. Do Kyungsoo, the boy who was probably the most unathletic person in the whole class right now. 

 

But before Baekhyun knew it, the dodgeball was flying straight towards his face. 

  
  
  


Baekhyun awoke to a squeaking noise beneath him and the ceiling moving above him. The lights above him quickly flashed by and he soon realized it wasn't the ceiling that was moving, but it was him — he was strapped down on a bed and he was being wheeled around. 

 

“Huh?” He looked to his left and right but there was no one there. He decided to lift his head back a little to see who was pushing him, even if he'd see upside down. 

 

His eyes met with the stoic face of his rival, Do Kyungsoo. The younger only looked ahead, not sparing Baekhyun a glance even if he just woke up and started moving around. Baekhyun tried to lift his head forward, to see what Kyungsoo was staring so intensely at.

 

“Hey, Do Kyungsoo, where are you taking me?” 

 

His rival didn't answer and continued wheeling him towards the light. 

 

“Why aren’t you answering? I said where are you taking me?!” Baekhyun demanded, raising his voice now. He began struggling against the straps that were holding him down onto the bed. “Why am I tied up like this?!” 

 

They were only getting closer and closer to the door. 

 

Kyungsoo finally made it to the end of the hallway and stopped walking when they were both out the door. Baekhyun could see they were outside, where buildings stood tall and reached into the skyline. There was a traffic light nearby and they were still on the sidewalk. 

 

Yes, they were on the sidewalk, but wHY WAS THERE A WHITE CAR SPEEDING TOWARDS THEM?! 

 

“Kyungsoo!! Kyungsoo, there’s a car coming at us!!” Baekhyun screeched. “Why’d you stop moving now?!?! We’re gonna get hit!!” 

 

Baekhyun looked up to see Kyungsoo’s unbothered expression, then turned back to his right to see the car still rushing towards their direction. All he could do was let out a bloodcurdling shriek as he feared for the last moments of his life. 

  
  
  


Baekhyun woke up screaming his head off and to another person’s hands trying to push his shoulders back onto the bed. 

 

“Baekhyun, you’re okay!! It’s just a dream!!” he could decipher the nurse’s voice even with his screams drowning it out. “Just a dream, it’s not real!!” He stopped flailing around, trying to make sense of where he was. He was on a bed in the nurse’s office, and she was trying to get him to calm down. 

 

It wasn’t her that was trying to hold him down, though — it was Do Kyungsoo. 

 

That only made him panic more. 

 

“What is he doing here?!” Baekhyun asked, alarmed. 

 

“Kyungsoo? He brought you here,” the nurse answered as if it wasn’t a big deal, though she was surprised that Baekhyun didn’t seem to be on good terms with him. The younger seemed really worried when he carried him here. 

 

“ _ He _ did?” 

 

“Yes…” 

 

Baekhyun looked at his rival, who seemed interested in looking everywhere else in the office but at him. Not that Baekhyun was dying to have eye contact with him, but he was really curious why Kyungsoo, out of all people, would bring him here. 

 

Kyungsoo could feel Baekhyun’s eyes concentrated on him, and it made him feel really uncomfortable. “Don’t say thank you, it’d be weird,” he said. 

 

“Who said I was planning on thanking you? You’re the one who knocked me out, of course you should bring me here,” Baekhyun answered defiantly. 

 

The nurse spoke up, interrupting their squabble, “Kyungsoo can also take you back to class. You might have a slight concussion — nothing serious, so don’t worry — but come back here if you feel really nauseous.” 

 

Baekhyun looked at the clock on the wall and saw that he was knocked out for about two periods. “I can go back to class now?” he asked. 

 

“Yes.” 

 

Kyungsoo got up from his seat and gathered Baekhyun’s things for them. They thanked the nurse and exited the office. Once they were out in the hallway, Baekhyun turned to his rival. 

 

“Hand it over now. You don’t need to pretend to act nice anymore,” Baekhyun commanded.

 

Kyungsoo silently gave him back his backpack. They continued walking down the hall together; class was in session at this time, but it was a lunch period, so there were some students roaming in the halls. 

 

“What’s the score?” Baekhyun asked out of nowhere. 

 

“Score?” 

 

“Between you and me,” Baekhyun answered impatiently. 

 

“You’re keeping score of  _ what? _ ” Kyungsoo asked incredulously. 

 

“Our rivalry! As in who’s better for Chanyeol! I can’t believe I have to  _ compete  _ for my crush…” 

 

“You’re the one who made it like this!” Kyungsoo insisted. “I was just liking him from afar and suddenly, you attack me from out of nowhere!”  

 

“Yeah, but now you’re beating me all the time! Can’t believe you have that kind of arm on you,” Baekhyun muttered, still hung up on being knocked out by Kyungsoo’s dodgeball. “Were you pretending to suck at sports this whole time so you can come out from behind and do that sort of thing to me?!” 

 

“No, I really do suck at sports,” Kyungsoo answered. “That was just a lucky throw.” 

 

“Shut it! Lucky throw, my foot…” 

 

“Why do you even see me as a threat? You’re Chanyeol’s best friend…” 

 

“Yeah, but he won’t tell me who he likes,” Baekhyun grumbled. 

 

All of a sudden, Kyungsoo stopped walking. “Who… who’s that with Chanyeol?” 

 

“You’re just trying to distract me, so you can hit me in the back of the head while I’m not looking!!” Baekhyun yelled out, hands immediately flying to cover the back of his head. “Landing me in the nurse’s office wasn’t enough, I see!! I’M LITERALLY HAVING DREAMS OF YOU KILLING ME!!” 

 

“No, really! Just stop and look for a second!! Who is that guy walking with Chanyeol!!” 

 

Baekhyun paused and turned to see a tall and lanky guy smiling at their crush — Chanyeol was even laughing along with him!! 

 

“Hey! Only we’re allowed to be rivals!!” Baekhyun exclaimed, referring to Kyungsoo and himself. “Who does Oh Sehun think he is!!” 

 

“His name is Oh Sehun?” Kyungsoo asked. 

 

Baekhyun took his eyes off the two and turned to his rival. “Yeah, he’s in our gym class.” 

 

“Why is he suddenly our rival?” 

 

“Don't you see him?!” Baekhyun shouted. “He's practically throwing heart eyes at Chanyeol AKA  _ FLIRTING _ !!” 

 

Kyungsoo looked at them again to evaluate, then turned back to Baekhyun. “Not… really…”

 

The older ignored him. “We should team up and start making a plan.”

 

“Plan for what?”

 

_ “A plan to eliminate Oh Sehun.” _

  
  
  


After about a week, their gym class had long moved onto the tennis unit; they already covered hitting the ball with their forehand and backhand, having done small drills leading up to those skills. 

 

When the gym teacher announced that they were going to learn how to serve today, Baekhyun and Kyungsoo immediately looked at each other from across the gym and wordlessly nodded their heads. 

 

After the teacher showed initial demonstrations, he let everyone grab a racket and set off to do their own thing, as long as they were practicing their serving. However, Kyungsoo and Baekhyun had other plans — or specifically,  _ a plan _ . 

 

It was a foolproof one, one that couldn’t go wrong. All their classmates would be serving at each other from across the net, meaning there would be too many people and too many tennis balls bouncing around for anyone to notice that they were aiming for Sehun. They would serve the ball so hard at Oh Sehun, making him bust an internal organ or something, and send him to the hospital for a month so that Chanyeol wouldn’t get to talk to him and they wouldn’t be able to spend as much time together. 

 

Then, Baekhyun and Kyungsoo could stop being comrades and return to being rivals for Chanyeol’s heart.

 

The two schemers purposely made their way to a position that was right across the net from where Sehun was standing. All they had to do was aim straight, and they could probably break his nose or shatter his perfectly sharp jawline. 

 

“You go first,” Kyungsoo quietly prodded Baekhyun on as the first people started to serve.

 

“Why should I?” Baekhyun asked indignantly. “I'll go after you!”

 

“It was your plan!!” 

 

“But you also like Chanyeol!!” 

 

The two of them were pretty loud, and they sounded like children who were arguing at a playground, so everyone just ignored them. 

 

Kyungsoo flinched when Baekhyun struck that last note a little too high and loud and looked around to see if anyone was paying attention to them.

 

“Shut up! You're being too noisy,” Kyungsoo harshly whispered to him. “How about we both serve at him at the same time?” 

 

Baekhyun immediately smiled. “Good idea!! It'll hurt even more for him!” 

 

Kyungsoo nodded, then held out the tennis ball in front of him to get ready to throw it up in the air; Baekhyun did the same, face full of determination. 

 

“On the count of three,” Kyungsoo said.

 

“One… 

 

Two… 

 

_ THREE!!!” _

  
  
  


“Foolproof plan, huh? I mean, I’m disappointed but not surprised.” 

 

“I think since you threw that dodgeball at me, I’ve been overestimating your athleticism,” Baekhyun grumbled while pressing an ice pack to his shin. 

 

“I’M NOT AN ATHLETIC PERSON! EVERYONE KNOWS THAT!” Kyungsoo bursted out. “OF COURSE I’D SUCK AT TENNIS!” 

 

“OH, IS THAT WHY THERE’S A RUMOR GOING AROUND THAT YOU WERE CRYING WHILE WATCHING THE PRINCE OF TENNIS ANIME?? BECAUSE YOUR SKILLS SUCK IN COMPARISON TO CARTOON CHARACTERS?!?!” 

 

“LISTEN!! YOU WEREN’T ANY BETTER THAN ME, ALRIGHT?!”

 

The nurse only shook her head in the background, listening to the two boys bicker. “Idiots like you two are the reason why the sports teams in our school are being terminated for being “too dangerous”. 

 

“Ms. Lee, that’s not a nice thing to say to two injured students,” Baekhyun whined. 

 

“My injury is probably more severe than yours,” Kyungsoo lashed out, holding an ice pack of his own to his shoulder. “How am I going to do anything with a pulled muscle in my right shoulder?” 

 

“Okay, but like, that’s your problem. How am I going to move around with a bruised shin bone?” Baekhyun answered back. “It hurts to even  _ walk _ .” 

 

_ “That’s your problem,” _ Kyungsoo mocked him.

 

“You’re both overreacting,” the nurse sighed as she walked back into her office room. 

 

As soon as she was gone, Baekhyun immediately turned to Kyungsoo with his game plan face on and spoke in a low serious voice, “Alright, Oh Sehun won that round, but not this time.” 

 

“You’re not giving up?” 

 

“‘Giving up’?! Who do you think I am?!” Baekhyun squawked. 

 

“An annoying pest who doesn’t know when to stop,” Kyungsoo answered seriously. 

 

“ _ Anyways _ ,” Baekhyun continued, ignoring the younger, “Sehun is always the slowest to change and the last to get out of the locker rooms. Do you know what this means?” 

 

“No.” 

 

Baekhyun rolled his eyes at Kyungsoo’s lack of tact. “ _ It means  _ we should strike at that time since he’s alone in the locker room!” 

 

“Okay,” Kyungsoo said with his full attention focused on what Baekhyun had to say. “I’m listening, go on.” 

 

“Okay, so you how when you stack dominoes next to each other? Then you knock one down, which in turn knocks the next one down, then the next one, and the next one, and the next one—” 

 

“Yes, I get it,” Kyungsoo deadpanned. 

 

“Yeah, the Domino Effect! We’re gonna do that with the lockers,” Baekhyun said. “Hear me out!” he exclaimed when he saw Kyungsoo’s weirded out expression. “If we knock down the lockers from near the entrance, it will topple over the other lockers until it reaches him at the back. In addition, he can’t see who did it to him, so we wouldn’t get in trouble!” 

 

Kyungsoo began laughing out loud, but one look at Baekhyun and he realized he was being completely serious. The older looked at him expectantly, so he was prompted to say something. 

 

“You must have thought about this so thoroughly,” Kyungsoo said sarcastically. 

 

“Yes, and it’ll take two people for it to work!” Baekhyun insisted.

 

“Okay well, you can find someone else, because I’m not going to go along with your  _ stupid  _ plan.” 

  
  
  


“I can’t believe you’re making me go along with your  _ stupid _ plan.” 

 

“Just push!” Baekhyun commanded as he braced both hands against the lockers. 

 

The two of them put all of their effort and might into pushing — all they needed to do was knock down this row of lockers and the rest will be history. 

 

They had to hold in their grunts so that their prey wouldn’t suspect a thing. It was getting increasingly harder to do so, because the lockers weren’t budging and they had to try even harder. Kyungsoo could feel his veins in his neck about to pop and Baekhyun was already sweating.

 

They could feel the lockers finally inch just slightly, when—

 

“What are you guys doing?” 

 

Both Kyungsoo and Baekhyun jumped up in alarm; they were too busy concentrating all their strength and willpower into pushing the lockers, that they didn’t notice their target was already leaving. 

 

“Oh, Sehun! You’re still here?!” Baekhyun asked, too loud to be casual. 

 

“We were just…” Kyungsoo scrambled inside his head to find an excuse, “doing some extra working out after gym! Haha, you know us, always getting injured, so our grade for gym sucks and is bringing our overall average down!” 

 

“But… our gym grade isn’t counted towards our overall,” Sehun cautiously told him. 

 

“Oh… oh, really?” Kyungsoo said, acting surprised. “That’s good to know then! Baekhyun, we were doing this for nothing!” 

 

“Haha, is that so?!” Baekhyun exclaimed. “I don’t think it’s for nothing, I’m trying to gain some nutella abs!” 

 

Sehun looked at them with one eyebrow raised, but raised his hand to say bye. “Okay, well, I’ll see you guys later.” 

 

Once they heard the locker room door shut, the duo slumped down against the lockers in defeat. 

  
  
  


Baekhyun and Kyungsoo were sitting down on a bench in their school’s courtyard. They were underneath a tree so they were in the shade, away from the sunlight. Both of them had their elbows on their knees and their heads on their hands, disheartened expressions on their faces. 

 

“That didn’t work either,” Baekhyun sighed out dispiritedly. 

 

Kyungsoo gave out a deep sigh of his own, and his posture seemed to slump down even more. He was too drained and disappointed to even think of insulting Baekhyun and his failed plan at this point. 

 

“What should we do now?” the older continued to talk out loud. 

 

“We should give up.” 

 

Immediately, Baekhyun’s head snapped up towards Kyungsoo. “What?! Give up?! Are you not serious about your feelings for Chanyeol?!”

 

“I am,” Kyungsoo affirmed. “That’s why I think I can’t hold onto him any longer.” 

 

“What do you mean?!” 

 

“If Chanyeol likes Sehun, then I should let him be happy with him.” 

 

“Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun started earnestly, grabbing onto his shoulders, “you can’t give up like this. After all we’ve been through, you can’t have thoughts like that!” 

 

The younger slowly and gently removed Baekhyun’s hold on his shoulders. “I really admire your perseverance… but our rivalry ends here.” 

 

“Ah, if you’re gonna be like this, then what does that make me?” 

 

Kyungsoo smiled at him and patted him on the back, while Baekhyun just continued to pout. When Kyungsoo turned away, he saw Chanyeol and Sehun walking towards them. Right away, his eyes widened and he tapped Baekhyun to look up. 

 

“Hey guys, why do you look so down?” Chanyeol asked as he neared them.

 

“Ah, it’s nothing,” Kyungsoo immediately responded. 

 

Chanyeol looked slightly hurt when Kyungsoo wouldn’t let him know what was going on, so he turned to Baekhyun. “Did something happen?” 

 

“Uh, not much,” Baekhyun agreed, nodding his head a little. 

 

“These hyungs are a little weird…” Sehun commented on their behavior, also remembering the incident in the locker room. 

 

“Kyungsoo’s not a weird person,” Chanyeol answered, “but I clearly know well how weird Baekhyun can be.” 

 

“You’re weird, too, you know,” Baekhyun accused Chanyeol, then turned to Sehun. “And you, who are you to Chanyeol that you are telling him that we’re weird?”

 

“I’m just his younger friend,” Sehun replied casually. “He’s just been helping me with my classes.” 

 

“Yup, and he’s been a handful,” Chanyeol laughed then turned to Kyungsoo. “Hey, did you start your final architecture project yet?” 

 

Kyungsoo nodded. “I have an idea for it, I just need to gather materials and actually build it.” 

 

“That’s great!” Chanyeol exclaimed happily, but then awkwardly asked, “See you later?” 

 

Kyungsoo nodded, as a dumbfounded Baekhyun watched the whole thing unfold before him. Sehun followed as Chanyeol walked away towards the school. Once the coast was clear, Baekhyun grabbed Kyungsoo’s shoulders again. 

 

“Did you hear that? Sehun is only a younger friend!” 

 

“Yeah…” 

 

“And wasn’t it strange? Chanyeol seemed like he was trying to make conversation with you! But you don’t know how to talk properly!” 

 

“I’m sorry?” 

 

“He looked like he wanted to say more to you, but didn't know how to. Do you know what this means?” Baekhyun asked, determined. The glint in his eyes made Kyungsoo groan, because he knew he was coming up with another ridiculous plan. 

 

“I’m not following your plans anymore,” Kyungsoo said with finality. “I have to focus on my architecture project.

 

“Awww,” Baekhyun whined. “Then what are you going to do?” 

 

“I’m not going to do anything,” Kyungsoo answered. “If Chanyeol really likes me, then we will end up together without me playing any stunts. This is the risky aim I’m taking.” 

  
  
  


Kyungsoo’s strategy didn’t settle with Baekhyun, because it made him almost want to root for him. However, with Sehun eliminated from the competition, it was just the two of them pitted against each other again. Byun Baekhyun didn’t have the words  _ give up _ in his dictionary.

 

However, he thinks he’ll know how it feels like to lose soon. 

 

“Do Kyungsoo, show me what you got!” their architecture teacher exclaimed enthusiastically, tucking his clipboard underneath his arm. 

 

Kyungsoo, Baekhyun, and Chanyeol were in the same introduction to architecture class; it was the only period that the three shared together. Since it was nearing the end of the semester, their final project was due and each student had to present and hold a demonstration of their invention in front of the whole class. 

 

“So my project focused heavily on the Domino Effect, where one thing leads to a chain of events, setting off each thing as it goes on and on,” he looked over to Baekhyun. “I got this idea not too long ago, when my friend and I tried to do something crazy with a bunch of lockers.” 

 

Baekhyun couldn’t help but laugh a little, just thinking about the childish plan and all they went through. He continued smiling because he noticed Kyungsoo called him his  _ friend _ . 

 

“Using that idea, I expanded on it by adding other elements into my project to create a whole sequence of chain reactions. I hope you enjoy, because it took me quite a while to set this up,” Kyungsoo said, wrapping up his presentation. 

 

The teacher and his classmates waited in anticipation and watched expectantly as Kyungsoo made his way to where the start of his project was. Taking a deep breath and silently praying he did all the measurements correctly, he stuck out his finger and slightly poked the first domino. It was enough for it to fall down, knocking into another and another and another… 

 

The last domino fell onto a little ball that was the size of a grape; it was pushed onto a little slide that Kyungsoo had to build himself in order for this project to succeed. At the end of the slide was a toy dinosaur that was knocked over by the ball onto a latch. The weight of the toy switched the latch on, and the rope connected to it shifted slightly, onto the flame of a lit candle. 

 

The flame seared through the rope, and the weight of a filled balloon, which was being held up by the rope, finally came down onto the cactus waiting below it. 

 

_ POP! _

 

Confetti from inside of the balloon exploded everywhere. The teacher and students were taken aback and amazed by the intricate contraption that Kyungsoo had built. He was definitely earning an A+ on this project. 

 

“Wah, that was great!” 

 

“How long did that take him to make?” 

 

“I should have thought of something like that.” 

 

The students clapped as Kyungsoo bowed and thanked everyone. The teacher was writing furiously onto his clipboard, then finally handed over an evaluation sheet to Kyungsoo just as the bell rang, indicating the end of the last period of the day. 

 

“What did you get?” Baekhyun asked, bouncing over to the younger. 

 

“A+, of course,” Chanyeol interrupted as Kyungsoo was going to answer. The tall student turned to Kyungsoo and smiled. “That was really good. It was fun to watch!” 

 

“Thanks, Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo said, smiling back widely. “Your mini merry-go-round was really nice, too. It must have been really hard to make.” 

 

“To be honest, I wanted to pair up with you, but this dummy here ran over to me in 0.1 seconds as soon as he heard we could pick our own partners,” Chanyeol complained, pointing at Baekhyun. “He didn’t even do anything, I had to do all the work.” 

 

“I was  _ busy _ ,” Baekhyun retorted, but Kyungsoo knew exactly what he was busy with — coming up with ideas to get rid of Sehun, of course. 

 

“Kyungsoo, next time, let’s pair up!” Chanyeol insisted enthusiastically. “I’ll prove to you that I’d be a great partner! After school, let’s go out for coffee or something!” 

 

Kyungsoo’s eyes widened, because he could see right through Chanyeol clearly. It was the end of the semester and this was their final project, but he was insisting on pairing up? Kyungsoo tried to compose himself from squealing internally at Chanyeol’s cute and obvious mistake and asked coolly, “So like a date?” 

 

“Yeah, if you wanna call it that,” Chanyeol answered shyly. 

 

Kyungsoo expression brightened tenfold and he was about to respond happily when — 

 

“Pft, Chanyeol’s not that great. You’re mediocre, too. It’s like you guys belong together or something,” Baekhyun scoffed at Kyungsoo, interrupting the two. 

 

“You ruined the moment,” Chanyeol pouted. 

 

“It’s my job as your  _ best friend _ ,” Baekhyun emphasized. “Kyungsoo’s already used to me being like this, right?” 

 

“Unfortunately,” Kyungsoo deadpanned. 

 

Chanyeol playfully shoved Baekhyun’s face out of the way and spoke to Kyungsoo, “I have to get some stuff from my locker. I’ll meet you outside in front of the school, alright?” 

 

Kyungsoo nodded happily and Chanyeol gathered all of his things and jogged out of the classroom, not wanting to keep his date waiting for too long. 

 

“He finally got the courage to ask you out,” Baekhyun murmured. “Even though he’s a little late and he made a huge mistake to make himself look stupid, better than chickening out and never doing it, right?” 

 

“You knew this entire time?” 

 

“I didn’t know it was you,” Baekhyun confessed. “I had a little hope it was me, since he was so reluctant to tell me who he liked. He did tell me he was nervous around the person all the time though. It really turned out to be you.” 

 

Kyungsoo’s face fell a little; seeing Baekhyun so calm like this made him worry a little. “Don’t worry! I think it’s just a trial date. It’s not like he asked me to be his boyfriend or anything.” 

 

A small smile found its way onto Baekhyun’s lips. “It’s definitely not. He likes you a lot.” 

 

Kyungsoo frowned a little deeper and asked quietly, “Does this really mean the end of our rivalry?” 

 

Baekhyun nodded. “Yes, to be honest, it was getting a little tiring. I’d rather be friends with you. Having nightmares about you killing me is not ideal for getting a good night’s sleep all the time, you know.” 

 

Kyungsoo laughed. “You’re ridiculous; you’re the one who attacks me first, I act out on self-defense.” 

 

“Aish, just go on your date already! Chanyeol is probably waiting for you outside.” 

 

“Oh? You’re right,” Kyungsoo said in surprise. “Alright, then, I’m leaving now.” 

 

Kyungsoo gathered all his books into his backpack and put on his jacket. He waved at the older before exiting the classroom. 

 

Baekhyun watched Kyungsoo’s back as the younger walked down the empty hallway, towards the exit of the school. He was going to turn around and walk to his locker and gather his things when he felt compelled to yell out something. 

 

“Hey, Do Kyungsoo!!” 

 

Said boy turned around with a curious look on his face. 

 

“Don’t you ever give up on Chanyeol!! If you do, you’re dead for making me surrender to you!!” 

 

Kyungsoo smiled brightly, which was rivaled only by the light shining through the glass windows by the exit. Baekhyun realized this was the first time Kyungsoo genuinely smiled at him and it felt really good. 

 

“Thanks, Baekhyun.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick fic that wasn’t supposed to exist because I told myself I would stop claiming but you only live once and I had fun writing this!! However, I didn't do tsundere!Soo any justice :( I was also gonna make Baekhyun declare he was never gonna give up on Chanyeol in the end, but I think starting a friendship with Kyungsoo is also a nice way to go :’) This fic is dedicated to all of you who worked hard on this fest!! 
> 
> Free play - where students can play anything they want during gym class: basketball, badminton, dodgeball, volleyball, tennis


End file.
